A Selkie Story

Chapter Eighteen: Short for Murder

Two months later, February.

"ANDREI! THERE'S ANOTHER MOUSE IN THE KITCHEN!"

Andrei came barreling into the kitchen, hair tousled from his nap on the couch.

I'd taken to working from home, and Andrei had volunteered to keep me company. By company, I mean he helped around the house while I sat on the floor at the living room coffee table, drawing and clicking away on my drawing tablet.

Grandpa's retired lighthouse was a small cabin-like structure added on to the old lighted tower. From the entryway, there was a quick pace to the upwards stairs on the left, or the compact, eclectic living room on the right. Upstairs, there was a small bedroom which housed a small closet and my messy, queen-sized bed. Past the stairs on the ground floor, the living room opened into the kitchen with a small breakfast table. No fancy entertaining spaces here. The kitchen held a back door, which opened to the bluffs and a view of the Atlantic ocean. From the living room, there was another door that led to the light tower, old and precarious as it was.

All in all, it was a cozy space, and Andrei quickly finished housework that my motivation never seemed to find the time to do. It was a win-win situation for me; my house got cleaned, and I only paid him for it in food. It worked for us.

I'd been in the kitchen, putting the kettle on, and I'd found a dead mouse on the kitchen floor next to the kittens' water bowl.

"It was freaking Myrrh, again! Ugh!" I threw up a little inside my mouth and the sight, and I turned around to face the kettle again as Andrei took care of it.

"You're so scared of a tiny mouse, it's cute."

"It's not cute, it's--ugh. It's the eyes, Andrei, the eyes."

I heard the outside kitchen door close, and I heaved a heavy sigh of relief.

Frankie was teaching her kits to hunt, but at the expense of my sanity. The adorable little buggers slept in the house during the night, but they stayed outside with their mother to hunt and play the rest of the day. A saving grace for my poor sinuses. I sneezed, just thinking about the dander.

In almost no time at all, Andrei was back, and he headed straight to the sink. While he lathered up his hands, I leaned against the nearby cabinet.

"You know what I just realized?"

"What?"

"What Myrrh is short for."

He cocked his head curiously, finished washing his hands and drying them on the nearby towel.

"What?"

"Murder."

He snorted and clasped his hands to my cheeks. Squishing them together, contrary to my protests, he kissed me.

"Adorable."

Then he left me standing there, beet red, whistling as he sauntered back to the couch to lay back down. I rolled my eyes and poured the now whistling kettle over my teabag.

When I entered the living room again, I noticed Andrei was fully stretched out, not unlike a cat himself, soaking in the shaft of sunlight shining through the unshuttered window.

I harrumped at him.

Taking all the space up, the nerve. I'll show him.

I took my tea mug (American, hallo!) in both hands, circled the couch, ignored Andrei's questioning gaze, and promptly sat straight on his stomach.

The violent exhalation and groan were enough to make me chortle with enough laughter that I wasn't able to stand up again.

Andrei recovered quickly, too quickly for my taste, and turned over to his side while moving me off his stomach, so I was sitting in a cradle of his thighs and chest, my back against his stomach.

He propped his head up on one hand and eyed me scornfully,

"What was that for?"

I sniffed disdainfully and turned up my nose at him,

"There wasn't any room for me on the couch. So I made some."

"Oh, you did?"

"Yes, I-- stOP!"

Andrei relieved me of my tea without me realizing and promptly began to tickle my sides mercilessly.

My phone ringing broke the tickle fight, and I scrambled from the couch to grab it from the charger in the kitchen. Barely registering the name on the caller ID, I answered with a casual,

"Wassup?"

"Hey, are you coming to the wedding?" My sister, Molly, asked accusingly.

"Yeah? It's over James' spring break, right?"

"Yup. You should totally invite your boy, too."

My heart stopped for a bit, butterflies hatching.

"Uhhhhh, I don't know if he'd be comfortable going--"

"What would I not be comfortable going to?" Andrei interrupted from the kitchen doorway.

"Uh, nothing?" I stalled, covering the microphone.

"Who are you talking to? Is it Andrei? Lemme talk to 'im."

I had to distance the phone from my ear, Molly's voice had gotten so loud. Consequently, Andrei heard what my sister said as well.

"I'll talk to her." He acquiesced, holding out his hand palm up. I let out a sigh, ready for my life to be over, and handed over the phone.

He greeted my sister politely, then wandered out the back kitchen door to stand looking out over the bluffs.

Quite a bit nervous, and not wanting to hover at the back kitchen door, I put the kettle on and found decently organized pantry items to organize even more.

A while later, Andrei walked back inside and handed me the phone.

"Your sister told me to tell you to not forget a present." I sighed and nodded, replugging in the phone.

"So, how'd it go?"

He shrugged, folding his arms and leaning against the counter next to me.

"She asked me if I was free to come to her wedding in March."

"And?"

He shrugged again,

"I have no orders then, I will go see your sister wed to this James."

My eyes grew wide,

"Really? You really want to go?" My voice was gaining in excitement, and Andrei quirked a smile at me, his cheek wrinkling into smile lines.

"Really, I want to."

With a cry of ecstatic joy, I threw my arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. Surprised, his hands faltered in the air, before hugging me back.

"You are very happy about this, no?"

"I am so happy you're going! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I gave him another squeeze before looking up into his face,

"I didn't want to pressure you into going, but then I didn't know how to ask you, and--"

He kissed my forehead softly, which caused my brain to shudder to a grinding halt.

"You can always ask, ELEPHANT. I will tell you if I want to or not."

I nodded, positively vibrating with excitement. I turned away from him to go back to my computer, fingers itching to start planning,

"First things first, we've got to get you a suit. Also, I've probably got to get a dress that matches her colors. What were they? I'll have to ask..."

I went off on a ramble, taking a sip from my now lukewarm tea, Andrei watching amusedly from his spot on the couch behind me, all the while thinking that this was going to be the best trip ever.